Saturday May 7
No internet access to-night, frustrating. Below was all posted early morning on the 8th.
Booking a 7.30 a.m. breakfast usually means that we have the table to ourselves for most of the time. This morning a couple from the ‘West Midlands’ (how twee is that) ate at the same time. He a retired teacher, so pedantic and slow, she a sweetie. And........they leave to-morrow for Cathy’s where we shall be with them for three of our four days. For breakfast anyway.
This part of Mull is known as the Ross of Mull
We began our birding with Fidden where the highlight was a Mountain Hare running full pelt towards us along the roadside fence of a sheep field. He was only two metres away.
The drive to Tiroran via Loch Beg was slow, owing to regular traffic which either dived into a passing place for us or, more normally, us for them. It does prolong the journey. Plenty of no parking or waiting here, RSPB signs near the eagle nest, no sign of a White-tailed Eagle in nearly two hours of watching from Tiroran road river bridge. It had rained gently more or less constantly all morning and continued to do so for the rest of the day.
We spent some time cruising the shores of Loch Scridain, looking for Otters. One of the very flighty Common Sandpipers stood still long enough or one photo.
Why do birds choose the least attractive perches? Swallows are here in force.
Pam wanted to fill the petrol tank so we returned towards Phionnphort, the next garage is at Craignure. Pam had a view of a male Hen Harrier this morning - I failed to follow the instructions......We had a ring-tail - female or immature male - at Fidden on Friday, which I forgot to include in this Blog.
The road to Lake Assapol and the Scoor Estate starts west of Bunessan. It starts well enough but soon deteriorates. A lot of tree felling since last year, both here and at Tiroran. We lunched at the end of the permitted track, looking over Loch Assopol, where we have an extensive view of surrounding mountains and moor. So many Wheatears and Meadow Pipits and one Buzzard.
Scoping revealed five Tufted Duck for the list. On the return lurch and bounce, Pam stopped the car near the centre of the lake to allow a car to pass. I scoped again and found two Red-throated Divers very actively bathing. Are they breeding here? We rarely see them on Mull, whilst Great Northerns are frequent if always distant. Mostly immatures but, this one looks near adult.
After a comfort stop for Pam, Fidden again, just to the campsite this time. A flock of Dunlin with a few Ringed Plover were still racing about,
two Red-breasted Mergansers hugged the shore,
and a pair of Eiders drifted by.
Not one but two Mountain Hares on the far bank again, one with a lot of white showing, the other in complete summer garb.
Driving around the grassy area to try and photograph the hares, we startled three Twite. No time for a photo. Not a great birding day but we did see two separate Whitethroats in places where we haven’t seen them before.
This part of Mull is known as the Ross of Mull
Wildlife & Wild Places, Ross of Mull
Landscape & habitats
The Ross of Mull has some of the most varied geology on the island.
The western end of the arm of the Ross, reaching as far along the north coast as Bunessan and beyond Scoor on the south, is classified as boulder moor. Here we see boulder-strewn moorland and peat bogs and rocky bays with off-shore islands - a wild, rugged landscape.
Moving east, lower ground - especially along the north coast - is characterised as basalt lowlands. The indented coastline has a distinct stepped profile, such as at Ardtun. The open moorland is occasionally broken by rocky outcrops and ledges. On the lower fringes of the moors, a mosaic of woodland, bog and rough pasture can be found with scattered small-holdings. Higher ground, in the centre of the peninsula and forming the spectacular coast from Malcolm's Point back towards Carsaig, the landscape is of high stepped basalt. Here are the distinctive, stepped outlines of the steep upland summits and offshore islands, and vegetated scree slopes below sheer basalt cliffs with flat-topped headlands at the coast. The open moors have exposed rock faces and there are few settlements except in sheltered coastal locations.
The eastern end of the peninsula - and beyond, into Glen More and much of eastern Mull - is a high tops landscape. This is a diverse landform, of large, rugged and steep mountains with exposed rock faces and screes, scrub-filled gullies, waterfalls and small lochans. There are relatively wide glens between ranges of mountains.
We began our birding with Fidden where the highlight was a Mountain Hare running full pelt towards us along the roadside fence of a sheep field. He was only two metres away.
The drive to Tiroran via Loch Beg was slow, owing to regular traffic which either dived into a passing place for us or, more normally, us for them. It does prolong the journey. Plenty of no parking or waiting here, RSPB signs near the eagle nest, no sign of a White-tailed Eagle in nearly two hours of watching from Tiroran road river bridge. It had rained gently more or less constantly all morning and continued to do so for the rest of the day.
We spent some time cruising the shores of Loch Scridain, looking for Otters. One of the very flighty Common Sandpipers stood still long enough or one photo.
Why do birds choose the least attractive perches? Swallows are here in force.
Pam wanted to fill the petrol tank so we returned towards Phionnphort, the next garage is at Craignure. Pam had a view of a male Hen Harrier this morning - I failed to follow the instructions......We had a ring-tail - female or immature male - at Fidden on Friday, which I forgot to include in this Blog.
The road to Lake Assapol and the Scoor Estate starts west of Bunessan. It starts well enough but soon deteriorates. A lot of tree felling since last year, both here and at Tiroran. We lunched at the end of the permitted track, looking over Loch Assopol, where we have an extensive view of surrounding mountains and moor. So many Wheatears and Meadow Pipits and one Buzzard.
Scoping revealed five Tufted Duck for the list. On the return lurch and bounce, Pam stopped the car near the centre of the lake to allow a car to pass. I scoped again and found two Red-throated Divers very actively bathing. Are they breeding here? We rarely see them on Mull, whilst Great Northerns are frequent if always distant. Mostly immatures but, this one looks near adult.
After a comfort stop for Pam, Fidden again, just to the campsite this time. A flock of Dunlin with a few Ringed Plover were still racing about,
two Red-breasted Mergansers hugged the shore,
and a pair of Eiders drifted by.
Not one but two Mountain Hares on the far bank again, one with a lot of white showing, the other in complete summer garb.
Mountain Hares
The grassland around Fidden is the easiest place on the island to see the Mountain Hare - a smaller, shorter-eared relative of our typical Brown Hare, replacing it in upland areas. [view Wildmap]
They are very elusive but can be caught napping in their daytime forms with some care and patience. There is some debate about whether the Mull hares are of Irish descent, but they do turn white in winter, similar to other UK Mountain Hares - the Irish subspecies rarely does this.
Driving around the grassy area to try and photograph the hares, we startled three Twite. No time for a photo. Not a great birding day but we did see two separate Whitethroats in places where we haven’t seen them before.
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